I am considering getting a supplied air respirator such as a HobbyAir 1 or a Turbine Products Breathe-Cool. Do any of you use such a respirator and do you have a preference over either one? The masks I have used in the past just do not cut it anymore, they don't fit or keep out the dust or paint fumes adequately. I am thinking of a full face mask too, instead of a hood. Opinions? Thanks.

If you are going to be spraying paints (including primers) that require a hardener, then by all means use a supplied air system. Your health is worth much more than the cost of the system. I bought a Hobby Air with full face mask, and I still use it.

My previous Home Help Gal worked nights at the hospital, then came here, with her face mask ON! There's rumor in the neighborhood that I'm DEATHLY ILL! "Maybe" thet's why NO ONE comes over????
Blll Healthy

The Hobby Aire works great and no maintenance. The only down side is you must get use to dragging the extra hose around. Its definitely worth it to avoid breathing the fumes especially from the two part paints. I use the just the half mask with no problems.

My previous Home Help Gal worked nights at the hospital, then came here, with her face mask ON! There's rumor in the neighborhood that I'm DEATHLY ILL! "Maybe" thet's why NO ONE comes over????
Blll Healthy

My guess is the Breathe-Cool is becoming more popular because of the price. For example, the Hobbyair base system with half mask runs $429 while the Breathe-Cool equivalent is $360. The Hobbyair however does come with a longer hose that contributes to the higher price. While perusing both sites, it seems that Breathe-Cool has a few more options as far as accessories, larger selection of hoods and masks, more options for hose lengths etc. Hoses are also a little cheaper as well.

The Breathe-Cool also has a built in rheostat so you can adjust the amount of airflow, which is nice if you want to add longer hoses or run an air supplied hood. They also sell a flow meter which is good for setting up the proper airflow to make sure you get enough air.

I was going to go with a Breathe-Cool for the above mentioned reasons, but ended up getting a Hobbyair Buddy after finding a steal of a deal on a used system. I have had no regrets with it and am glad I got one. In the end I figure it will pay for itself vs buying the cartridge respirators, plus I do not have to worry about expiration dates anymore. I also figure that when I am done with the system, I can probably sell it for about as much as I bought it for.

One last thing, as mentioned before, is that the Hobbyair comes with 40’ of hose. For most use I have found this to be enough, but there have been a couple of times that I could have used a longer hose. The Breathe-Cool only comes with 25’ of hose, I would recommend getting at least 50’. You need enough hose to put the unit in a non contaminated environment, and also have enough to allow you to move around the project you are painting.